USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development

USC Students Engage Children Every Week

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:16:49 -0800

Now in its third year, ENGAGE has been helping make a positive difference each week in the local community, providing dinner, structured homework time, guest speakers, field trips and activities for neighborhood children. The program began when then-USC graduate students Jesus Diaz and Renee Burwell noticed a dearth of after-school programming for local children. Burwell is an alumna of the USC School of Policy, Planning, Development, having earned her MPA degree in '08.

Fannie to Let Troubled Borrowers Lease Back Homes

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:54:37 -0800

November 6, 2009

The Los Angeles Times quoted SPPD Professor Richard Green in an article about mortgage giant Fannie Mae, which announced that it would allow people who are losing their homes to foreclosure to lease those properties back for up to a year at market rental rates. "This is a very wise business decision because these loans are underwater, and they are not going to get all of the money," said Green, director and chair of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate. "Fannie has an incentive to keep the homes reasonably maintained because they are going to want to sell them one day."

Commercial Property Market Predicted to Hit Bottom

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:16:49 -0800

November 5, 2009

The Los Angeles Times quoted SPPD Professor Richard Green in a story stating that the commercial real estate industry is expected to hit bottom in 2010. Green said that real estate industry leaders who are meeting at the Urban Land Institute's annual gathering in San Francisco are more optimistic than they were at this time last year, because they can see the reckoning finally on the horizon. Green, who directs the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate, added that he isn't sure whether bankers will do what he thinks they should. "One thing that is worrisome is that banks are still delusional," he said, adding that they are extending weak loans while hoping for a turnaround that will preserve older, higher property values.

Public Open Houses for Multi-Million-Dollar Homes May Generate Buzz, Currid Says

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:12:51 -0800

November 5, 2009

The Los Angeles Times quoted SPPD Assistant Professor Elizabeth Currid in an article about real estate agents holding public open houses for homes valued at more than $10 million. Currid said that having people going through desirable properties has a positive spillover effect. "It's like gallery openings. The art may not be bought on the walls, but it bumps up people's interest. You are generating buzz," Currid said. "Yes, you take the risk of real estate tourists showing up at a $25-million open, but the flip side is those people may start thinking about their own homes. You plant the seed that it is worth it to look at the real estate market again."

Getting the Goods on a Moving Dilemma

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:35:00 -0800

November 4, 2009

More than 200 experts from the world of goods movement converged on the National Urban Freight Conference, which was organized by the METRANS Transportation Center, to discuss critical issues ranging from traffic to logistics to pollution. METRANS, a research partnership between USC and Cal State Long Beach, is directed by USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development professor Genevieve Giuliano.

Melnick on Loma Linda Health Center's Purchase in Medical Group

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:19:27 -0800

November 4, 2009

The Contra Costa Times quoted SPPD Professor Glenn Melnick in an article about Loma Linda University Adventist Health Sciences Center acquiring a minority interest in EPIC Management, a Redlands-based physician group management company. The financial performance of medical groups has weakened in the least 18 months, and as a result many are seeking buyers, Melnick said.

Little Discusses New Laws to Overhaul Water System

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:08:20 -0800

November 4, 2009

The New York Times quoted SPPD Senior Fellow Richard Little about the new water package that would lead to a sweeping overhaul the state's troubled water system. "This is the most comprehensive water resources action that California has taken since the state water project in the '60s," Little said. "First of all, there is so much in it. And for the first time, they are tying ecosystem enhancement and environmental restoration directly to the infrastructure. Before, we always planned the projects and then mitigated the impacts. Now it is all on co-equal footing." The Riverside Press-Enterprise also quoted Little on the subject.

SPPD Grad Wins Award for Best Dissertation

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:30:57 -0800

November 2, 2009

USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development alumna Anupama Mann recently received the Gill-Chin Lim Award for the best dissertation on international planning for her thesis, "A Megaproject Matrix: Ideology, Discourse and Regulation in the Delhi Metro Rail." The award is given by the Global Planners Educators Interest Group at the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning.

Jeffe Discusses Newsom's Withdrawal from CA Governor Race

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 16:21:33 -0800

November 1, 2009

The Los Angeles Times quoted SPPD Senior Fellow Sherry Bebitch Jeffe about San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom dropping out of the California gubernatorial race. "Voters are a little chary of electing another novice," Jeffe said. "Where are you going to get that experience? In one of those six-year Assembly people who have nowhere else to go? I don't think so."

Study Examines Effectiveness of English Language Classes

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:24:13 -0800

October 29, 2009

The Los Angeles Times cited research by the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute at USC which stressed the importance of getting students out from under the designation of "English-language learner" before they enter high school, when the chances of dropping out increase. "The United States has never learned what is the best way to teach English to English learners," said SPPD Professor Harry Pachon, president of the institute. "That's really a shortcoming." The research was also featured by National Public Radio's "All Things Considered," the Associated Press, the Los Angeles Daily News, and La Opinion.

Center for Economic Development Gets Grant

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:30:09 -0800

October 28, 2009

The USC Center for Economic Development was awarded a two-year $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration to broaden the scope of the center's applied research and outreach initiatives. The center is housed at the USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development.

SPPD Dean Visits Capitol Hill

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:52:38 -0800

October 27, 2009

Jack H. Knott, dean of the USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development, met with congressional staffers on Oct. 14 in the offices of Rep. Brian P. Bilbray (R-Carlsbad) and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) about federal hiring practices and federal internship programs.

Jeffe Comments on Media's Treatment of Obama

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 11:27:24 -0800

October 27, 2009

The Wall Street Journal quoted SPPD Senior Fellow Sherry Bebitch Jeffe in a story on how the media seem to be easier on President Obama than former President George W. Bush. "There may well be almost an unconscious effort on the part of the media to give Obama a bit more slack because he is more likable, because he is the first African-American president. That plays into it," Jeffe said.

Comedians Now Getting Laughs Out of Obama Jokes

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:35:23 -0800

October 26, 2009

The Christian Science Monitor quoted SPPD Senior Fellow Sherry Bebitch Jeffe in a story on how comedians are finally getting laughs out of President Obama jokes, nine months after his inauguration. Jeffe said that comic sketches such as those on "Saturday Night Live" have more power today because they live in cyberspace forever. "Back when Chevy Chase made Gerald Ford into a bumbling idiot, you either saw it on TV or you read about it," Jeffe said. "But it didn't play forever. Now people send these links to all their friends and it has a whole new, secondary life that people talk about more." The danger is that people will lose sight of what comedians actually do -- namely, work for a laugh, Jeffe said. "Shows like 'SNL' are perceived to be part of the liberal media establishment, so when they use the president to get a laugh, it's perceived as some sort of betrayal."

Jeffe Weighs in on Pelosi's Political Balancing Act

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:32:32 -0800

October 26, 2009

Politico ran an op-ed by SPPD Senior Fellow Sherry Bebitch Jeffe about Speaker Nancy Pelosi's struggle to keep all political factions happy, even if that means bucking her own party's president. "Today, there's a lot more attention paid to what congressional leaders do and say. Smoke-filled rooms have been replaced by the 24-hour news cycle, blogs, Facebook and Twitter. That makes compromise harder and leadership (on either end of Pennsylvania Avenue) an often helter-skelter proposition," Jeffe wrote. "There is irony in all of this tumult. Pelosi may be playing to her crowd -- independent of Obama's wants -- to solidify her base. But in the end, everything Pelosi wants to accomplish depends, to a large extent, on the president. For her to be successful, Obama needs to be successful."